what courtney won.

50 centimos for her imaginary upcoming trip to peru!

a brand new postcard showing how lucerne looked 30 years ago!

a handy magnetic grocery list, only half-used!

a ball of something wrapped in tulle! 

maybe it goes in the bath.  

maybe it's a grenade.  

let us know when you find out, courtney.

an old navy lanyard for all those times when you want to pose as a sales associate!

i wasn't kidding about the disneyland keychain with my name on it.

for that fabulous 4th grader in your life.

one dozen of the world's best homemade chocolate chip cookies.

(i'm the only one who has eaten them, 

so they are definitely the best in my world.)

(only ten pictured because i ate two, but i replaced them with prettier ones, don't worry.)

i'm kind of a big deal.

look at this picture:

that photographer must be amazing, right?  just kidding, i took that picture. 

 now read these words:

quiet contemplation it was at the temple of edfu in egypt in early june 2009 and the temperatures were already well over 100 degrees.  despite the temperatures, the ancient site was crawling with tourists, chattering loudly and snapping photos.  on my way out,  i caught sight of this man, in his traditional gellabiya and ammama.  he was tiny in comparison to the giant columns and he sat in his corner oasis silently watching the people, who didn’t see him. i wondered what he was thinking:  did he marvel at their strange way of dress, like we did at his? was he full of pride that all these people traveled so far to explore the treasures of his homeland?  or was he full of resentment that they represented wealth that he would likely never know?  was he in awe of the magnitude of the sacred temple like the visitors?  or was it commonplace to him, a backdrop that he no longer really saw?  as i stood wondering all this, two other similarly dressed men appeared from behind the columns and greeted their friend with handshakes and smiles and the quiet serenity of the moment was broken.

 yep, you guessed it.  i wrote them.  pretty cheesy, huh?  it turns out though, that the people at the library LOVE cheese because those words and that picture WON

FIRST PLACE!!! (in the adult category)

i am an award-winning photographer!  an award!  won by someone who sometimes doesn't take her camera on trips because it's too much of a hassle!!!  won by someone who spent two weeks in beautiful italy and took a grand total of 17 pictures!!!!  award-winning photographer!

my prize is that my photo will be on a bookmark that the library will distribute by the hundreds to all their patrons who will grab one because they need something to write on really quick.  and that, my friend, is way better than a cash prize. (of course, it's not, but i don't want myself to feel bad.)  AND my photo (and possibly my words) will be part of a traveling exhibit.  my photo will travel to literally SEVERAL county library branches.   i think i will tell people that i have my own exhibit.  i wonder if my name will appear.  that would be so great.  i'm going to take a whole bunch of bookmarks and pass them out to people i know so that they'll be aware that they now know someone famous.  maybe i'll send one to you in my next surprise giveaway.  if you see me on the street, don't be intimidated.  come up to me and say hi.  it's nice to meet the fans.  and bring your bookmark, i'll sign it for you.